More Than Just my Wife
by AmazingWingedGirl
Summary: Lily Evans becomes Lily Potter in this wedding oneshot! :D Read and review!


**I know, it's been a while! I wrote this quite a few months ago, and figured it was about time I posted it! This is just my idea of how James and Lily's wedding ceremony would have gone. Read and review!**

"I can't do this," James said weakly, staring blankly ahead out the window across the lawn on which he was about to be married. That is, if his knees (and heart) would hold out. Sirius laughed his barklike laugh from somewhere on James's right.

"Do you mean to tell me that after seven years of asking, pleading, and begging Lily Evans to go on a date with you, countless hours spent trying to win her attention and now galleons upon galleons spent to make this wedding perfect, you've got cold feet? Come off it, Prongs," he consoled, clapping an arm around his best mate's shoulder as he sipped from a goblet of butterbeer. The two young men were standing in a large lavender tent behind the altar setup, anxiously awaiting the moment they would be led out in front of the crowd of friends and family to begin the wedding. It was to take place on the vast lawn of one of the larger manor homes in Berkhamsted, Hertfordshire, England. The ceremony would be held outdoors and the reception inside the manor home. Sirius had been trying for the last hour to calm James's nerves before the ceremony, but nothing was working. Instead of the smirking, laughing James Potter Sirius knew, a glassy-eyed and jittery clone was standing in the tent.

"I can't do it," James said simply, his mouth quite dry.

"Well, it's a little late to turn back now, mate," Sirius said. He checked his wristwatch. "You're getting married in ten minutes."

"I'm getting…getting married. Shit," James whispered, running a hand through his ever-messy hair.

"Hah," Sirius laughed again. "Enjoy these last few moments of freedom while you can."

"I'm—I'M GETTING MARRIED!" James shouted, shaking Sirius's shoulders and causing him to spill half his drink onto the ground. "TO LILY EVANS!" James had a kind of manic smile on his face, as if he only just come to realize this fact. "Lily…," he said softly, trying to sneak a peek through the flaps of the tent at the assembly outside.

"Well, I should hope so," Sirius said, fighting to keep a straight face, "it is her you proposed to, isn't it?"

"Yeah," James said; he seemed to have fallen into some kind of drug-induced trance.

"Well, you had better pull yourself together; can't have a wedding with no groom, can we?"

James shook his head. "And the groom is only half-present without his best man," he said, grinning at Sirius with the same kind of playful smile he wore when planning a joke; for a moment, Sirius caught a glimpse of James's usual bravado through the mask of his nervousness. A second later, the balding, priestly wizard, Father Borachio Ogbourne, who was to marry James and Lily, entered the tent, fully dressed in his ceremonial robes and smiling warmly at James and Sirius.

"James," he said with the calming voice only a deeply religious wizard could possess, "we are soon to begin. If you and Mr. Black would kindly come with me…."

James hissed a string of swear words under his breath, suddenly sweaty and even jumpier than before. "Padfoot, I'm not ready!" he whispered in a panicked voice.

"Merlin, you sound like a bloody bridesmaid!" he looked James up and down. "This is not the bloke who proposed to Lily Evans in the middle of the Three Broomsticks; this is…this is Wormtail's Uncle Earl when he found out he had spattergroit, this is." James managed a shaky laugh. "Honestly, mate, you haven't a thing to worry about; you look smashing—as do I, I might add—and you only have to say two words!"

James took a deep breath, trying to slow his racing heartbeat. "You're right. I'm being thick," he muttered.

"That's the spirit!" Sirius cheered. Father Ogbourne stuck his head in again.

"Now, boys!" James looked once more at Sirius, who nodded reassuringly. The two men then stepped out into the late afternoon sun; everything was bathed in a golden, not-too-bright glow as the sun began to set ever so slightly. This was Lily's favorite time of day; naturally, she had insisted that the wedding take place during it.

James stepped up to the altar and gazed upon the hundreds of people gather before him. He immediately spotted his mother in the front row next to Mrs. Evans, whose eyes were already watery. Next to Mrs. Evans sat Remus Lupin and Peter Pettigrew, aka Moony and Wormtail, the other two Marauders. Five minutes later, a kind of uniform hush seemed to fall over the crowd, as if they had all known ahead of time when to stop talking amongst themselves.

"It's time, Prongsie," James heard Sirius whisper behind him. Indeed, it was. No sooner had the words left Sirius's mouth than a sweet, melodic tune began to float through the air. Everyone turned in their seats as Lily Evans appeared at the end of the aisle, arm-in-arm with her father, who could not be smiling wider if someone told him he had just won the lottery. They were followed by Lily's Maid of Honor, Dorcas Meadowes, and the ring bearer, James's little cousin Eddie. James's heart leapt and lodged itself somewhere in his throat as Lily came into full view; she was gorgeous. Lily's long red hair had been drawn up into a fancy bun; sections of her hair had been braided and woven through a glittering crystal hairpiece. Attached to the hairpiece was a lacy white veil that ended just above her lower back. Her dress was pure white and strapless; beads had been sewn in intricate patterns on the bodice, and the skirt, which was tiered in the back, brushed the floor as she and her father walked slowly and surely forwards.

James knew then that he was, without a doubt, the happiest man alive. His hazel eyes hastened to meet Lily's emerald green ones as she came closer and closer. Upon catching her gaze, a huge grin split across his face. _Lily. _He couldn't believe it; Lily Evans was here, of her own free will, to marry James Potter. Father Ogbourne spoke in his calm voice as Lily and her father stopped at the end of the aisle, "Who gives this witch to this wizard in marriage?"

"I do," Lily's father replied, his voice thick with happy tears. After what seemed like an hour—albeit a very dreamlike, incredible one—Lily's father relinquished his hold on his daughter's arm and watched with glistening eyes as she ascended the three small steps to reach James's level. The mothers of the two young adults were well past holding back tears; they now sobbed openly into handkerchiefs as their children smiled into each other's eyes. Lily seemed to radiate love as she held out her hand to James after handing her bouquet of cream-and-orange-colored roses to Dorcas. Trembling, James took her hand in his own and stood facing his soon-to-be wife.

James didn't hear a word the old wizard was saying as he spoke of the holy joining of hands in marriage and the joy that this union should bring to all; he was utterly lost in Lily's eyes. They were the only two people in the world; James couldn't be more content. Lily must have sensed the fear James was hiding behind his smile, for she gently squeezed his hand and gave him an encouraging smile. Together they stood for at least five more minutes, anxiously awaiting the moment they would officially become husband and wife.

"Do you, James Keaton Potter, take Lily Elizabeth Evans to be your lawfully wedded wife?" There was silence; James seemed not to have heard.

"James," Lily said softly, a laugh present in her voice. James's eyes widened.

"S-sorry," he stammered. Father Ogbourne smiled warmly and repeated the vow. James stood still for a moment, holding Lily's gaze.

Finally, he spoke, confidence blooming within him. "No, sir, I don't," he said suddenly. A collective gasp and several harried whispers issued from the crowd, but James ignored them; he was not finished. He smiled at Lily, who seemed to know he was up to something. "Father Ogbourne, if I may?"

"By all means, my son."

James took a deep breath and closed his eyes for a moment, determined to do this right. "I, James Keaton Potter, take you, Lily Elizabeth Evans, as more than just my wife. I take you as my other half, my reason for breathing, and above all, my equal." Lily's green eyes were swimming with tears. "I don't know what life holds in store for us," he said, voice thick from holding back tears, "but I will provide for you, be by your side whether we are rich or scraping by, whether we are healthy or just barely holding on, whether we are happy or fighting back tears. I will be," he took a deep, shaky breath as he tried to keep from crying, "completely yours, as I have always wanted, from the first day we met." Lily choked back a sob and smiled through her tears at the man in front of her; how could she ever have disliked him?

Lily swallowed hard, trying to find her voice so that she could tell James how she felt. "I, Lily Elizabeth Evans, take you, James Keaton Potter, as my husband, as my lover, as—as—" her voice broke and she flung her arms around James. "I love you," she whispered softly, knowing he had heard her. Father Ogbourne cleared his throat; James and Lily broke apart. Eddie had stepped forth with the rings and presented them to James. Shaking, James took Lily's diamond ring from the silken pillow and placed it on her finger.

"With this ring, I thee wed," he whispered. Lily then took the golden band from the pillow and slipped it onto James's ring finger.

"With this ring, I thee wed."

Father Ogbourne raised his wand and drew in the air a shimmering, silver cross. "By the power vested in me, I now pronounce you husband and wife." He turned to James. "You may kiss the bride."

In one swift, smooth movement, James had captured Lily's lips in his own, hearting fluttering around like a hyperactive owl. A dozen golden doves fluttered out of two of the nearby ornamental bushes and soared above the couple, transforming midflight into a shining ribbon that then came to rest upon the altar. The applause was deafening, but James could clearly hear Sirius laughing and cheering behind him, his and Lily's mothers' sobs of joy, and Remus wolf-whistling. Father Ogbourne had to shout over the crowd, "Family and friends!" he proclaimed as James and Lily broke their kiss. "I present to you, for the first time—Mr. and Mrs. James Potter!"

**What'd you think? Leave me a review; I'd love to hear from you! **


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